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B. ROSING. PROCESS OF EXTRAOTING LEAD PROM ITS ORES.

No. 494,349. Patented Mar. 28, 1893.

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NITE TATES PATENT OXTFFIGE.

BERNHARD ROSING, OF OHARLOTTENBURG, GERMANY.

PROCESS OF EXTRACTING LEAD FROM ITS ORES.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 494,349, dated March28, 1893.

Application filed April 22, 1892. Serial No. 430,254. (No specimens.)Patented in Germany February 5, 1892.110. 64,615; in France February5,1892, No. 219,175; in Belgium February 5,1892, No, 98,235; in SwedenFebruary 5,1892, No, 3,940; in Spain March 18,189Z,No. 12,984, and inItaly March 31,1892, XXVI, 31.236, and LXI, 222.

To all whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, BERNHARD RESSING, doctorof philosophy,asubjectoftheKing of Prussia, residing at N 0. 14:9 Berlinerstrasse,Charlottenburg, Germany, have invented certain new and usefulImprovements in and Relating to the Extraction of Lead from its Ores orfrom other Plumbiferous Materials, (for which I have obtained LettersPatent in Germany February 5, 1892, No. 64,615; in France February 5,1892, No. 219,175; in Belgium February 5, 1892, No. 98,235; in SwedenFebruary 5, 1892, No. 3,940; in Spain March 18, 1892, No. 12,984, and inItaly, March 31,1892, Vol. XXVI, No. 31,236, and Vol. LXI, No. 222;) andI do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being hadto the accompanying drawings, and to letters of reference markedthereon, which form a part of this specification.

This invention relates to the extraction of lead from its ores or fromother plumbiferous materials, and more especially to the extraction oflead by what is known as the double decomposition process, whereby thelead is obtained in a metallic form by the reaction of an oxygencompound of lead upon a sulphide of lead or a sulphide compound of lead.The oxygen compounds of lead heretofore employed in this process werederived from various sources, as for instance, by roasting lead ores, orfrom fine dust, slags, or gangue or litharge and lead sulphides, thesecompounds generally containing lead oxide or sulphate. In the reactionthat ensues, when an oxygen lead compound is broughtin contact with alead sulphide, the oxygen of the former combines with the sulphur of thelatter to form sulphurous acid which escapes with the other gases andproducts of combustion to a condenser, and thence to the chimney of thefurnace whether reverberatory or other, the lead in both materials beingseparated in a metallic form. This is also the case when the oxygen leadcompound contains lead sulphate, the sulphur of the latter combiningwith the oxygen of the former to form sulphurous acid. These reactionstake place according to the following equations:

This process of extracting lead by double decomposition presents manyinconveniences and gives rise to serious losses. In the first place, incarrying out this process the roasting of the materials and the doubledecomposition require a comparativelylarge expenditure of fuel, andduring the process of roasting some of the lead is volatilized, while ifsilver is present and the temperature is not properly regulated thelatter is also volatilized and passes over with the gases and productsof combustion. On the other hand, the process requires time and is verylaborious. Finally, during the reaction and formation of sulphurous acidgas the latter escapes with other gases and the products of combustionby which said sulphurous acid gas is not only largely contaminated butgreatly attenuated, so that its separation from the foreign gaseousproducts of combustion becomes very difticult and costly.

The object of my present invention is to obviate the difficulties andinconveniences above referred to, and consists in a process and in theprovision of means whereby the double decomposition may be effectedwithout the use of fuel in a rapid and economical manner, so that thesulphurous acid gases formed are obtained in a substantially pure statefor use as may be desired, or for conversion intosulphuric acid.

In carrying out my improved process I combine the oxygen and sulphide oflead compounds under such conditions that the double decomposition willbe effected by the heat generated by the reaction without theapplication of artificial heat. To this end I smelt the oxygen compoundof lead and-then cause the same to flow onto thesulphide or sulphidecompound of lead which I preferably preheat, or the heated sulphide orsulphide compound of lead may be brought into contact or mixed with thefluid oxygen compound of lead, the result of which is an instantaneousand very violent reaction under evolution of a great amount of heatsufficient to maintain thereaction to'completion, so that theapplication of heat is avoided and consequently the sulphurous acidgases are not contaminated by any foreign gases or products ofcombustion and may be readily condensed for useorconverted intosulphuric acid. This reaction taking place instantaneously proceeds veryrapidly so that a very notable saving intime and labor is also effected.

The process of double decomposition described may also be carried out bycombining the oxygen compound of lead with a carbon or carbonaceousmaterial, in which'case carbonic acid gas and carbonic oxide will beformed by the reaction, as is well known.

Any suitably constructed furnace may be employed in carrying outmy-inventionn Referring now to the accompanying drawings Figures 1 and 2are vertical longitudinal sections taken respectively on lines ab, andc-cl, of Fig. 3, of a furnace especially designed for carrying ontmyimproved process of double decomposition. Fig. 3 is ahorizontal sectionof thefurnacetaken on line fg, of Fig. 4, which latter is a verticaltransverse section of said furnace.

As shown in Fig. 3, the furnace-is divided into two compartments orchambers, K, and H, by a partition wall, W, said-chambers having ateachend a'short or stub flue,h,h and 70, 765, respectively, and in theside *walls'of said chambers areprovided charging or workingholes, T, T,and T, T, respectively, normally closed 'by suitable doors, not shown.The hearth of these chambers isso constructed as toincline toward -.atap hole, a, whi'ch;is thus locatedat thepoint ofegrea'test depth of thechambers, the hearth forming a pocket at thatpoint for the collection ofthe metallic lead which isdrawn off from'timetotime, or after eachoperation of double decomposition. The furnace is adapted to 'revolveabout a vertical axis or journal, Z, and is also adapted -to=be raisedabove the flue connections and lowered'again. Any suitable means may beprovided for=revolving the furnaceabout its axis, Z, and'raising andlowering the same.

In Fig. 2 I have shown thejournal, Z, provided with a gear wheel, L,meshing witha pinion,M,'the shaft of which mayberevolved from anysuitable prime motor, andinisaid figure I have shown the journal, Z,.asc011- structed in the form of a pistonfitted and working 'in ahydraulic'cylindelyO, for the purpose of raising and lowering'thefurnace by hydraulic pressure in a well known manner, and these devicesare 'only given asan example, as various other forms ofmechanisms'well'known in the arts may be employed for revolvingandraising and lowering the furnace.

Thestub flues, h, and h, as well as thestub flues, 7c, and k, areadapted to be brought intoregister'with a feed hopper, G, and flue, S,or with the fines, E,'F, by properly positioning the furnace, and saidflues have their compound of lead, the flue, S, leads to a con-.

denser or other apparatus for the reception of the sulphurous acidgases, the flue, E, is connected with the chimney of the furnace, notshown, while the flue, F, leads to the fire place, F'-,"Fig. 1.

The operation of the furnace is as follows: Assuming that the chambers,H, and K, are both charged :with sulphide of lead or asulphide'com'pound oflead, as-for instan'ce,igalena, the chargeinchamber, -I-I, having been heated while the-charge in chamber, K, Fig.3, is being heated bythefuelin thefireplace, F, the heat and productstofcombustion-em tering'chamber, K, through the flues, F, k, and passingout to .the chimney through fiues, 70, E, the chargesxofmaterialbeingintroduced into the'said chambers through thecharging orworking apertures, T, T, and T, T, :respectively. The=cover from the,feed hopper or flue, G, is now removed and a suitable charge of anoxygen compound of lead, as "for instancelitharge, iscausedto flow ontothe galena in said chamber, H,:a violent reaction will .at once @ensueunder-evolution of heat and formation of sulphurousiacid gas-whichescapes through flue=S,-the lead ingboth'materials separating'in theformofiaimetal and collectingzabont theitap-hole, a. When lithereactioncommences =t0 subsideit-ma'y "be activated by working up(stirringlthe: materials) which can be done .through the working holes,T, T, until the reaction is completed, the lead being drawnoiffromitimetotime, mat the completion .of the reaction as may be foundnecessary. The heat evolved by the reaction'is more than sufficientito=maintain the materials at the proper temperature to thecompletion ofthedouble decomposition, sothat'no'fuel is'usedinthis operation, wherebythe sulphurous acid gases,-or the carbonic acid gases incase a carbon isused instead of asulphide, are obtained in a substantially pure form.Duringthe processof decomposition, which as stated,lproceeds not only:very energetically but also very rapidly as compared with .the timerequired-in the practice heretofore,:the:galena in chamber,

K, is'beingh eated andprefera'blytoa temperature approximating aroasting temperature, the feed flue :or-hoppenG, being'of course closedduring the reaction. The 'furnaceis now elevated aboveits connectionsand turned one hundred and 'eightydegrees, and while in this elevated.position the residues in chamber, H, are'withdrawn through either orboth of the sub flues, h, and h and the furnace is again lowered,so thatthe last-named lines will now be in communication with the tines, F, andE, respectively, while the stub lines, is, and It, will be incommunication with the flues, S, and the feed hopper or flue, G, moltenlitharge being introduced through the latterinto chamber, K, to repeatthe reaction above described. It will thus be seen that while doubledecomposition without fuel is going on in one of the furnace chambersthe sulphide of lead material is being heated in the other, so that theprocess is a substantially continuous one, the litharge or other oxygencompound of lead being smelted in a suitablefurnace or smelter.

The loss of heat during the short time required to discharge thecontents of one chamber and recharge the same with sulphide material isinsignificant, and of no importance, more especially in view of the factthat during the reaction more than sufficient heat is generated tocompensate this loss and sustain the reaction to completion.

Although I prefer to preheat the sulphide material for the reason thatthe reaction is more energetic and more rapid and takes place under agreater initial evolution of heat, yet the said preheating is notabsolutely necessary. It will be readily observed that a loss of lead byvolatilization cannot take place in this process, nor is this the easewith silver, should any be present in the lead compounds,

so that the latter can be readily obtained by well known means.

In case the residues of the double decomposition should contain lead orsilver or both in such quantities as to warrant their extraction, thismay be effected in the blast furnace in a well-known manner, or by othermeans.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new therein, anddesire to secure by Letters Patent, isy 1. In the extraction of lead,the hereindescribed improvement, which consists in bringing a moltenoxygen compound of lead into contact with a decomposing agent that willliberate the lead from said oxygen compound, the decomposition beingeffected solely by the heat of the molten oxygen compound and the heatgenerated by the reaction,

2. In the extraction of lead the hereindescribed improvement, whichconsists in bringing a molten oxygen compound of lead, as litharge, incontact with a sulphide or sulphide compound of lead, as galena, thedecomposition being efiected solely by the heat of the materials and theheat generated by BERNHARD RosINe.

the reaction.

Witnesses:

RICHARD SCHMIDT, GEoRe SCHNEIDER.

